Behind The Battles | John C. Fremont - Battles Of The American Civil War

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
The bloodiest war on American soil. States versus states, Brothers
versus brothers. Join hosts, bang and dang as they take
you battle by battle through the most divisive time in
American history. Welcome to Battles of the American Civil War.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
All right, welco back battles American Civil War. Behind the
battles continuing on with some profiling styling, it's time Union
Major General John Fremont. He's might have heard of his
name before, but let me tell you something is let
me tell you something, brother, as time in the Civil War,

(01:04):
it's nothing compared to what he did before that. Because
this dude was an explorer, explored lots of the West,
him and his daddy in law. They believed in manifest
daciny and wanted to white people to take over the
whole world. Well that's of the United States. For Shell.

(01:26):
He was going on expeditions with Kit Carson and all
these kind of guys, did like four or five of them.
And then he was the founder of the California Republican
Party and he was the first Republican nominee for President
of the United States in eighteen fifty six. And he
was a United States with the first United States Senator
from California. He did it all. He did it all,

(01:50):
John Charles Fremont. He was born January twenty first, eighteen thirteen.
His daddy Charles Freeman Freemon with no tea. He was
a French Canadian immigrant who made a living as a
school teacher. His mom, Anne Beverly Whiting. She was the
youngest daughter of a big deal Virginia planter, Colonel Thomas Whiting.
Now her story is worth it so stupid. Her story

(02:13):
gets a little messy because, at age seventeen, she married
a wealthy guy from Richmond named Major John Pryor, who
was in his early sixties. Oh shit. Prior hired Freemon
Freeman to tutor Anne, but things took a turn when
Prior found out Anne and Freeman were having an affair
or how man it happens. Caught red handed Anne and Freeman,
they took off to Williamsburg July tenth, eighteen eleven, and

(02:35):
later settled in Norfolk, Virginia, bringing along some household slaves
Anne had inherited for her.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
They ended up in Savannah, Georgia, where Anne gave birth
to John out of wedlock. Prior wasn't having that bullshit,
and he put out a divorce petition in Virginia Patriot
accusing Anne of criminal intercourse. The Virginia House of Delegates
shut down the divorce, so Anne in Freemont couldn't even
legally Marry took pastwards back then in Savannah, Georgia, and

(03:05):
ran a boarding house to make ends meet. While freemon
he taught French and also dancing their domestic slave, a
Black Hannah. They helped raise young John.

Speaker 2 (03:16):
Miss Black Hannah hel Fast forward to December eighth, eighteen eighteen,
Fremont's dad he died in Norfolk, leaving Anna widow with
John and a few other young kids to raise on
a tight inherited income, and she packed up moved the
family to Charleston, South Carolina. Growing up, John knew his
family scandalous backstory and came from modest roots. Cool. He

(03:37):
was proud, kept to himself, and had this restless energy. Okay,
he was disciplined, but not big on following rules. He
was always eager to prove himself. People described him as precious, handsome,
and daring. Yes, was a handsome boy. He also had
a knack for winning over influential folks. Oh you're gonna
need that if you want to do what you're about
to do. Buddy him, you ain't kidding well. Later on

(03:59):
a lawyer named John Mitchell. He helped cover Johnny's early education.
In maybe eighteen twenty nine, Freemont enrolled at Charleston College,
teaching on the side in rural areas, but he got
kicked out in eighteen thirty one for barely showing up.
But he'd pick up a solid foundation in math and
natural sciences. Around this very time he caught die of

(04:23):
Joel Pointset, which was a wealthy South Carolinian and Andrew Jackson.
It was his ally.

Speaker 3 (04:31):
Oh that's nice, oh Andrew Jackson ally point Jackson Democrats
a right point set. He pulled some strings and got
freemonts a gig which he was teaching math on the
United States the USS Natchez, which was a Navy sloop
cruising in South American waters in eighteen thirty three. Look
at you, bud, go get some diseases in the old ship.

Speaker 2 (04:54):
He didn't stick with the Navy, though, he resigned and
took a job at second lieutenant in the US Topographical
Corps surveying a route for the railroad connecting trous And,
Louisville and Cincinnati, Oh. While working in the Carolina Mountains,
he started dreaming of becoming an explorer, oh like Dora.
Right between eighteen thirty seven and thirty eight, is itch
for adventure grew. While he was in Georgia, he was

(05:16):
doing reconnaissance for the Cherokee Indian Removal. Well, Jesus, think
of a good way we can drive these guys out,
you know, make sure the ground is real, Bumpy, I
guess that this time would be Dora would be uh
Carmen xan Diego, wouldn't she around back then? No?

Speaker 3 (05:31):
When Pointsett became Secretary of War, he hooked Freemont up
with the sweet opportunities.

Speaker 2 (05:36):
Hey, buddy, I got.

Speaker 3 (05:36):
A sweet opportunity for you. He said, Oh yeah, what's that,
mister Pointsett. You're gonna assist Joseph Nicolette, which was a
French explorer and scientists. He wants you to help with
him with mapping the lands between the mississipp and Missouri rivers.
Freemont became a top notch topographer. He trained in astronomy
and geology, and he got really really good at describing plants, animals, soil,

(05:59):
and even wanted resources.

Speaker 2 (06:01):
Hey man, that water is wet, and he does have
about three dozen plants named after him though, Oh that's nice.

Speaker 3 (06:12):
He wrecked up serious frontier experiences, crossing paths with folks
like Henry Sibley, Joseph Ranville, JB. Fairbault, Eddie and Provost
and even the Sue Nason. You got to see the
nation up, you got to see how the Sioux lived.

Speaker 2 (06:30):
So Freemont's out there doing his exploration thing with Nicolette,
and that's how he crosses path with this big shot
senator from Missouri, Thomas Hart Benton. He's the head of
the Senate Committee on Military Affairs, so he's got some
serious clout within the Benton he invites Freemont over to
his place in Washington, and that's where Fremont meets Jesse,
who's best sixteen year old daughters, a owner. She likes

(06:53):
to be alone. Uh. They're obviously really into each other,
but Benton's not thrilled at first because free it's not
exactly high a society, and that's a problem for a
big wig guy like Benon. Yeah, to me marrying my daughter, right,
it's like it's like, what the fuck? G I was
in Jack or even who wasn't It's either jeb or
somebody wasn't James longer or one of these guys wasn't

(07:14):
good enough, And then they eventually came around. Right well,
has always love winds out, love wins out unless you
wrote me On and Juliet, well, I guess right, eighteen
forty one free months, he's twenty eight years old, and Jessey,
they just go for it. They're like, let's do it.

Speaker 3 (07:33):
We're just gonna Elope and we're going to see the
Catholic priest if he'll do it.

Speaker 2 (07:37):
And sure enough, Catholic pre said, well this is It's
kind of weird because usually, yeah, the Catholics, you need
to do like a whole right right, Well, Beton, he's
livid when he finds out. He's furious, but deep down
he's crazy about his daughter. So he comes around eventually like,
I see all my baby girl. You just make sure

(07:57):
that piece of shits cuttingwood or something. When I come around.
A typical scene in the movie, the wife comes up
to him. If you push your away, she's just gonna
keep going further. I know.

Speaker 3 (08:08):
Not only does he accept the marriage, but it becomes
Fremont's biggest supporter.

Speaker 2 (08:11):
He has, he has to, he does. He is his
personal cheerleader. Basically, he's like, hey, man, I hope you
do good because that takes old uh, it takes old
Jesse with you, buddy. Oh real, You see, Benton's have
a hit here in the Democratic Party at this time.
He runs the show for the Senate for over thirty
years at this point. Damn, he's all in on this
idea called Manifest Destiny. Eighteen forties, eighteen thirty. Damn, he's

(08:34):
all in on this idea called the Manifest Destiny, which
is basically the belief that the United States is meant
to own the whole North American continent, east to west,
north to south, all of it. Oh yeah, this Manifest
Destiny has like a total crusade for him and all
other politicians like him, And now Fremont's part of it too,
thanks to his new daddy in law. Benton uses his
influence to push through funding in Congress for these massive

(08:56):
surveys of places like the Oregon Trail, Moregon Country, the
Great Base, and this here in Nevada all the way
to Cali. Oh I guess who's gonna head up three
of these. You know it, you guessed it. Oh Johnny
boy himself. Oh Benton hook him up with the leadership gig,
the money and all the political back and he needs
talk about a family connection. Huh, you can't get look

(09:17):
at this. See I didn't want him to marry and
he's like, you're gonna do something that your life. And
we thought the mobs started in nineteen twenty.

Speaker 3 (09:23):
Right back in eighteen oh four, the American West started
opening up big time.

Speaker 2 (09:29):
Big time.

Speaker 3 (09:29):
You had the Loewis and Clark Expedition for Lewis things
off Meriwether, Lewis and William Clark, they were the guys
leading it obviously as why as Lewis and Clark Expedition
bless pogonas or something right, Yeah, Uh, they're heading to
explore the brand new Louisiana purchase.

Speaker 2 (09:43):
They's got a franch Pogon, it's a second Julia. Yeah,
it's like.

Speaker 3 (09:48):
They're going out to explore the brand new Louisiana purchase
that old France said take it, yep, there's nothing here. Yeah,
literally they know, well, I guess kind of wasn't right,
said Farmland fucking turned everywhere.

Speaker 2 (10:01):
Son of a bitch.

Speaker 3 (10:02):
Their mission. Well, they wanted to find a northwest passage
from the Mississippi River all the way to the Pacific
Ocean or the Missouri.

Speaker 2 (10:09):
But yeah, yeah, same thing, not at all, But what
do you do?

Speaker 3 (10:13):
This was all part of the President Thomas Jefferson's big
dream of a Western empire, and he didn't stop there though.
He also sent zebelon Pike on the Pike expeditions to
check out the southwest as well.

Speaker 2 (10:25):
We're going to go south north or south north, We're
gonna go northwest southwest.

Speaker 3 (10:29):
I don't know what'd be worse, constantly going up down
that river or being in a freaking dry ass heat Arizona.

Speaker 2 (10:37):
Indian Territory as well. Yeah, that's rough New Mexico. Fast
forward to the twenties. In the twenties, but fast forward
to the twenties, you got American and European fur trappers
like Peter skien Ogden, Jedediah Smith, Jedediah Springfield roaming around
mapping out tons of the west. Right, these guys were trailblazers.
Then comes John who would later get the nickname the

(10:59):
Path Oh damn. He took what those earlier exployers did
and ran with it, added his own flare. He was
a beast at document and everything. His scientific reports, publications
and super detailed maps made the West feel like a
place anyone could picture head into.

Speaker 3 (11:14):
Yeah, so that was his job. They wanted people to go,
you want half ass and shit started. In eighteen forty two,
Fremont led five major exhibitions out west. But guess what
it gets wild from here?

Speaker 4 (11:25):
Damn.

Speaker 3 (11:26):
Between his third and fourth trips, the Old Mexican American
War said, guess what boys were footing for Texas, California
and New Mexico and Arizona, Oklahoma. And that totally flipped
his square upside down. Before that, his early explorations were
inspiring people.

Speaker 2 (11:42):
Like crazy, like we should we need to check out
this lands. His reports, co written with his wife Jesse Yes,
had this romantic vibe that got folks hyped to pack
up and move out West and getting slaughtered on the
lind He didn't mention anything about the Indiana. In eighteen
forty six, the Senate published seven maps based on his work. Crazy.

Speaker 3 (12:02):
Those became the ultimate guy for thousands of emigrants. They
literally mapped out the whole Oregon Trail. Yeah, man color
and all.

Speaker 2 (12:11):
All right, time to get into these expeditions. With the
first one, Nicolect He got no movies made about this guy,
I'm sure there is. Well, Nicolette got too sick to
keep exploring and they tapped John Fremont to take over.
His first big trip in eighteen forty two was set
up by Senator Thomas Penton. Obviously, Lewis Lynne and some
other guys were all about snagging Oregon territory. Right. Plan
was the head out in the summer, check out the wine,

(12:33):
the wind River, in the Rocky Mountain, scope out the
Oregon Trail through the South Pass, figure out stuff like
how fertile the land was, where to put forts, and
what the mountains and wyomings were like. Oh, just like
they were in Colorado right. Oh and on the strip,
by total luck, he ran into Kit Carson. We're probably
gonna do an episode on this guy, not on not
on this podcast, but our other podcast allows Gunslingers. Yeah,

(12:56):
everybody knows Kit Carson. He's a legendary mountain man. He
ended up being his guyed on this trip, and he
would take a couple more with him too. He didn't
have a beard though. Christy Adams did.

Speaker 3 (13:06):
Fremont Carson, and Yeah, Fremont Carson and the crew.

Speaker 2 (13:10):
Of twenty five.

Speaker 3 (13:11):
They kicked things off on a June fifteenth, eighteen forty two.
Starting at the Kansas River, they followed the Platte River
up to the South Pass. Then from Green River they
dove into the Wind River Range. Freemont even climbed his
his massive ass up here. Freemont even climbed this massive
thirteen thousand, seven and forty five foot peak which is

(13:35):
now called you gotsed Johnson's Peak. Fremont's Peak stuck, and
he also stuck American flag up there and basically claimed
the Rockies in the West for the United States of America,
for you, Johnny boy Nice. On the way back, they
got a bit reckless they're rafting the swollen flat and
lost a bunch of their year. Still, the five month

(13:58):
trip was a total wind. Freeman got back to Washington October.
Him and his wife put together this report of the
Exploring Expedition to the Rocky Mountains in eighteen forty three.
It got printed in the newspapers everywhere. People ate that shit up.
Didn't like the way they ink tasted, But what do
you can do? Fremont's take on the West wasn't all
danger and doom. It was this big, wide open spaces

(14:22):
inviting place ready for settlers.

Speaker 2 (14:24):
Mountains and vast fields and streams and rivers and lakes.

Speaker 3 (14:30):
And fantastic and Mormons right, this vision that he got
portrayed in the newspaper. They got folks seriously excited, Like
we said, we're packing up our shit and we're gonna
head out west. We were women something in fake prest.

Speaker 2 (14:47):
After Fremont totally crushed it on his first expedition, he's
back at it again for a second one, starting the
summer of eighteen forty three. This time way bigger plans.
It was the map out the second half of the
Oreon Trail, finding different route to South Pass and keep
pushing west to the Pacific Ocean along the Columbia River
in Oregon Country. Even made to the Pacific Ocean yet Fremont.

(15:08):
He rounded up almost forty guys, geared up, and they
kicked off from the Missouri River in May. Then he
stirred up a little bit of drama by snagging a
twelve pound howitzer cannon in Saint Louis, took it with
him on the Road Center. The ould move Charlie, Holy show,
he's gonna do some stuff.

Speaker 3 (15:23):
Yeah, he brought back Kit Carson. The guy's skill were unreal,
he said. Carson joined the crew on the Arkansas River.
They tried to find a new route through Colorado the
South past, but didn't work, so they stuck to the
regular Oregon trail.

Speaker 2 (15:41):
They cruise passed the huge eighteen forty three migration.

Speaker 3 (15:46):
They made a pit stop to check out the northern
part of the Great Salt Lake Great Salt Lake. Then
they're like, let's go to four haul after that Fort Boise,
before rolling into Marcus Whitman's mission on the Walla Walla River,
Walla Walla River by the Columbia Fremont Stamina and grit
on this long haul or next level.

Speaker 2 (16:06):
This guy doesn't stop. Nothing's seen, nothing seen like it
until the Trade Lions right right following the Columbia West,
they got a glimpse of the Cascade Range spot in
Mount Saint Helens as well and Mount Hood Damn. They
hit the Dallas Dallas on November fifth, and Fremont peeled
off to Fort Vancouver, which is run by the Hudson's

(16:28):
Bay Company, to grab supplies From there, his crew kept
going and reached Sutter's Fort in Sacramento Valley by March
of eighteen forty four.

Speaker 3 (16:34):
Fort Vancouver is run by the Hudson's Bay, which is
twenty five hundred miles away, right damn.

Speaker 2 (16:41):
Instead of heading back to Saint Louis at this time,
Fremont was like, we're gonna keep exploring. You wanted to
go scope out the great basin between the Rockies and
the Sierras, chasing Benton's big dream of claiming the West
for the whites. West for the whites.

Speaker 3 (16:54):
There's a lot of buffalo over here, guys, right, So
they went south along the eastern side of the Cascades,
hitting a lake Fremont named Pyramid Lake. Sticking to the
east of Sierra Nevada. They pushed down to what is
now Minda, Nevada, and they reached the Carson River on
eighteenth January, named after kit maybe eighteen forty four. Then

(17:16):
they're like, let's keep on moving west, boys, and the
brave that snowy Sierras. Fremont became one of the first Americans.

Speaker 2 (17:22):
Lay eyes and Lake Tao, Lake Tahoe now faking rich.
It's crazy. Get away waste.

Speaker 3 (17:29):
Carson stepped up big time though this one big dime.
He guided them through a new pass and Freemont named it.
Carson passed that I think this one for you, buddy,
this one's for you.

Speaker 2 (17:40):
Then they rolled down the American River to Sutter's Fort,
which is known as Nueva hal Visha, this time in
early March. John Sutter, the Swiss Mexican dude who built
the fort and later became American after a treaty a
Swiss Mexican guy. Huh, I might speak kind of cool. Hey,
he hook Fremont's grew up with fresh supplies. While there,
Fremont chatted with American settlers. They were popping up everywhere,

(18:03):
and he figured out that Mexican trol over California was
super shaky. He's like, oh, let's go right, They're a
little vulnerable over there, right, there's not much going on,
you know, Mexico's Mexicans are staying down there.

Speaker 3 (18:14):
And from Sutter's Fort, Fremont his squad they headed south
along the east edge of the San Joaquin Valley. They
crossed the tech Chappie River, They crossed a Tea Choppie
Pass and the Antelope Valley, They hit the Spanish Trail
near modern day Victorville, California. Then they went northeast through

(18:36):
what's now Las Vegas. They went through Utah, and they
went back to the south past Dude, everywhere, I and
everywhere man literally. While exploring the Great Basin, Freemont confirmed
that's all land. There were no rivers that flowed out
to the sea.

Speaker 2 (18:51):
Oh wow, that was a big deal.

Speaker 3 (18:53):
From the Great Basin right, that was a very big
deal because they cleared up a ton about North American
geography and killed those old myths about a Winna Ventura
River running from the Great Basin to the Pacific.

Speaker 2 (19:04):
Guess what, no, sir eh. After checking out Utah Lake,
they kept moving until they hit bents for an Arkansas River. Finally,
August of eighteen forty four, after over a year traveling abroad,
I guess it could be abroad. Basically, Fremont and his
crew they made it back to Saint Louis, oh back
and watching back in Washington, Freemont and Jesse they whipped
up another report packed with scientific details showing the Organ

(19:27):
Trail wasn't that tough to travel and as well as
hyping up the Northwest fertile land. You guys go here,
you make a living, right. The Senate and the House
were so stoked. The Senate in the House was so
excited they ordered ten thousand copies printed to spread the
word to the press and the public, pushing hard for
national expansion. Fuck yeah, Man, Fremont's vision was seriously firing
people up. They said, we got to go and see this,

(19:50):
get this shit with the United States gearing up for
possible war with Mexico and James Pope fresh in the
White House setting event and didn't waste any time and
got Fremont set up for a third expedition.

Speaker 3 (20:01):
The official plan was straight from the War Department. They
wanted Fremont to survey the Central Rockies and then the
Great Salt Lake area, then move on to parts of
the Sierra Nevada. Back in Saint Louis, Fremont pulled together
a legit crew of sixty armed guys, with Kick Carson as.

Speaker 2 (20:19):
His guide Puss. He had two bad ass scouts, Joseph
Walker and Alex Goody Gody. Yep, here's a good part though.
Benton and the Secretary of Navy, George Bancroft. They quietly
told Fremont that if war with Mexico popped off, he
should flip his mission into a full on military operation. Polk,
who had met with Fremont at a cabinet meeting, was

(20:39):
dead set on grabbing California. Fremont he was all in
training of conquering California for its beauty and riches. But
he was now he'd have to explain some shady moves
there later. Yeah, he does some stuff right. It was
the first June eighteen forty five.

Speaker 3 (20:52):
Fremont and his people they rolled out Saint Louis, aiming
first to find the source of the Arkansas River.

Speaker 2 (20:58):
And the state way to the west.

Speaker 3 (21:00):
So they headed west as usual, swinging by Ben's for it,
hitting a great salt lake, and taking the Hastings cut off.
When they got to the Ogden River, Fremont renamed it
the Humboldt. He said, I'll do whatever I want, right.
He split his body into two to cover morning round
makes sense, and to gather extra intel. But when he

(21:22):
reached the Arkansas River, Fremont he made this.

Speaker 2 (21:24):
Very bold move.

Speaker 3 (21:26):
He blazed the trail straight through Nevada to California. He
linked back up with the other half of his crew
out Walker Lake in west central Nevada. Ready to make
some serious moves.

Speaker 2 (21:38):
Right well, he took sixteen of his guys split off
from the other group again, rolling in the Sutter's Fort
in the Sacramento Valley December ninth. Right away he started
hyping up the American settlers there, getting them all fired
up with patriotic vibes, said the Zarland nice straight up
promised them that if war with Mexico popped off, his
crew would have their backs. Got you damn right. Then
they headed to Montereys and he had more supplies, but

(22:02):
he was readily there to meet with the American consul
Thomas Larkin and the Mexican commandant Jose Castro.

Speaker 3 (22:07):
Okay wow by fevue of eighteen forty six, Fremont he
linked back up with his forty five men near Mission
San Jose, which gave the United States a pretty solidid
military presence in Kelly. Castrow and the Mexican officials they
weren't even buying Fremont's act. They were suspicious and told
him to get the.

Speaker 2 (22:24):
Hell out of the country, Get out of here at Gringo.
He said, okay, but he didn't leave. He and his guys.

Speaker 3 (22:30):
They set up camp near the top of what's now
called Fremont Peak.

Speaker 2 (22:35):
In peer defiance. He raised the United States flag right
in the face of the Mexican AUTHORTA talk about a
power move on. Yeah, I'm total as you would think.
Things get tense after that and a four day standoff
with Castro's bigger Mexican force. So this guy start the
Mexican American wargue. He definitely had a part of that.
Fremont decided to bail and head north of Oregon. On

(22:58):
the way, his crew got caught up in what's called
the Second Mental River massacre. Oh shit, the details are messy.
Some of Fremont's guys, like Thomas Breckenridge and Thomas Martin,
they say they killed one hundred and twenty, one hundred
and fifty or even over one hundred and seventy five
Native Americans. Damn. Another witness, Tustin, he claimed it was
six to seven hundred killed on land, plus another two
hundred in the water. Shit. No records of any kind

(23:21):
show Fremont's men getting hurt or killed in this. Kit Carson,
who was part of the attack, he later called it
a perfect butchery. Wow. He was just going slaughtering people
for no reason. Assholes.

Speaker 3 (23:33):
Well, Fremont and his group that kept moving eventually camping
at Klamath Lake, but they're still clashing with the old
Native Americans, killing some on site as they went for nothing.
Right on May eight, Lieutenant Archibald Gilepsy he caught up at.

Speaker 2 (23:48):
Fremont, coming straight from Washington. Damn.

Speaker 3 (23:51):
He handed over dispatches he already given to Larkin, plus
secret orders from Benton and Buchanan that basically said get
aggressive warth Mexico's coming. And that very next day, ninth
of May eighteen forty six, narrative Americans they ambushed Fremont's
camp pissed off about all the killing of their men.
They're like, you killed our women and our children, and

(24:13):
our guys, guys and our tps.

Speaker 2 (24:17):
They got They got Fremont because they killed three of
us guys in their sleep, including a Native American who
was traveling with you know, trainer. Fremont hit back hard,
attacking a Klamath fishing village called Doc Dakwas the next day.
And what's now known as the Klimath Lake massacre problem is,
though those people might not even haven't been involved in
the ambush day Care fuck. The village at Williamson River

(24:39):
and Klamath Lake Junction got completely wiped out May twelfth,
with at least fourteen people killed.

Speaker 3 (24:45):
Fremont he was convinced the old British were behind this
arming and they get on the Native Americans to attack
his crew and any American they see. Things got wild
when Klimath warrior almost took out Carson after his gun
was fired. The warrior was about to shoot at poison arrow.
What Fremont saw that and Chodd's den trampled the guy
with his horse.

Speaker 2 (25:05):
By poison they mean literally covered in shit.

Speaker 3 (25:07):
Yeah yeah, Carson was like, holy shit, you saved my
life man.

Speaker 2 (25:11):
Thanks, I owe you right.

Speaker 3 (25:13):
A few weeks later, Freemont and his armed militia they
doubled back to Cali ready for whatever was next.

Speaker 2 (25:18):
Oh shit, Well, Freemont and his armed crew they're back
in Mexican California, headed south. Pulled up at Peter Lasson's
Rancho by Quajo May twenty fourth, eighteen forty six. He
got some bar or something. Well there he got word
from Lasson that the USS Portsmouth under Captain John B. Montgomery. Hey,
we'll get to him right civil war game.

Speaker 4 (25:41):
Uh.

Speaker 2 (25:41):
He was docked at Saslito Freemont. He sent Lieutenant Gelepsi
to Montgomery with a shopping list. He said, get me
eight thousand percussion caps, three hundred pounds of rifle led
keg of gunpowder, and some food because we're about to
go back to Saint Louis. Here oh May thirty. First,
he set up camp on the Barren Feather Rivers, about
sixty miles north of Sutter's Fort. Such of American immigrants
itching to rebel against Mexican rule joined a squad. From there.

(26:05):
His group launched another attack on local Native American ranch
area were settlements h that became known as a Sutter
Buttes massacre. Geez, how many massacres can you get out there? Fremont.

Speaker 3 (26:18):
By early June, fremont I was pretty sure that war
with Mexico was a done deal. So instead of bouncing
back to Saint Louis as he has planned, he teamed
up with Sacramento Valley insurgeons in his low key silent partnership.

Speaker 2 (26:30):
Part of the Silent Partnership.

Speaker 3 (26:33):
Tenth of June, Fremont he stirred the pot four of
us guys plus ten rebel volunteers. They jacked one hundred
and seventy horses, met for Castro's army, oh brought them
back to Fremont's camp. Historian H. H. Bankrout He says
that Fremont was was very sly about it, indirectly nudging
the American settlers to revote against being too obvious.

Speaker 2 (26:55):
He's like, you know, some of the outis just go
down there and steal a bunch of their horses and
show them what's up. Shame if they didn't have those
horses anywhere. Well. Then June fourteenth, thirty four armed rebels,
acting on their own, supposedly, they took over Sonoma, which
is the biggest settlement in northern California, and they forced
Colonel Mariano Vallejo and three others to surrender, Oh Colonel.

(27:16):
The next day these rebels, who the Sonoma locals called osos,
which is Spanish for bears. They got a little drunk
on Brandy, threw together a rough flag and declared the
Bear Flag Republic, picking William Id as their leader. That shit,
the four prisoners were hauled eighty miles to Fremont's camp
on the American River. Fremont he played it cool, publicly
denying any involvement in the raid, but the prisoners were

(27:38):
sent south to Sutter's Fort, where Sutter locked them up
on Fremont's orders. Anyway, now that we got them all.

Speaker 3 (27:44):
Right, can't let them go back and tell deal government
of Mexico. Around this very time, Fremont he started signing
his letters as military commander of the United States Forces
in California. Oh wow, Oh that's a big flags twenty
fourth of June got out to Fremont do at Californio
named Juan Padilla. He had captured, tortured and mutilated two osos,

(28:09):
and then he killed him and was holding others hostage.
Fremont said, oh hell no, he grabbed the crew. He
rode to Sonoma, arriving on twenty fifth of June. The
very next day, Fremont, his men, Lieutenant Henry Ford, and
somosos one hundred twenty five men total headed south to
San Rafael, hunting for Captain Joaquin de Lattore and his lancers,

(28:31):
who were supposedly ordered by Cashro to hit Sonoma. Guess
what all that looking didn't find.

Speaker 2 (28:37):
Them, didn't find them at all. June twenty eighth, castro
from across San Francisco Bay. He sent a rowboat to
point San Pablo and San Rafael with a message for
De Latore, Kit Carson, Granville Swift, and Sam Neil. They
rode to the beach and intercepted three unarmed guys who
came ashore. These were Don Jose, Briessa and the twenty

(28:57):
year old De Hero, twins Ramon and Francisco Go, who
were sons of Don Francisco to Hero. Okay, these three
were killed in cold blood. Who exactly pulled the trigger
still debated, but later Ac counts a point to Carson
doing it, likely on Fremont's orders or at least with
a little nudge and be ashamed of someone guilties, guys, Yeah,

(29:20):
that was crazy. Bet that was a rough scene.

Speaker 3 (29:22):
Right the first of July, Commodore John Slope, who was
running the United States Navy's Pacific Squadron, he sailed into
Monterey Harbor with orders locked down San Francisco Bay and
to block all other California ports as soon as he
was one hundred percent sure that was Mexico was. On
fifth of July, he got a message from Captain Montgomery,

(29:45):
filling him in on the Sonoma takeover and Fremont's rolling it. Slope,
thinking Fremont was acting on direct orders from Washington, started
executing his plan.

Speaker 2 (29:53):
Oh Ship.

Speaker 3 (29:54):
Early seventh of July, two hundred and twenty five sailors
and marine from the USS and two sloops, the USS
Cian and the USS Levant.

Speaker 2 (30:04):
They rolled into Monterey looking for trouble. Took it without
firing a shot, though, and they raised the United States flag. Well,
if war with Mexico wasn't on before, it's definitely on now. Wow.

Speaker 3 (30:15):
Slow had his proclamation read out loud and posted in
English and Spanish, basically saying, California, guess what the United
States now?

Speaker 2 (30:23):
Baby? Oh that's crazy jeez. July tenth, Fremont he got
word from Montgomery that the Navy had taken Monterey and
you're ba Buena. Two days later, Slope sent Fremont a
letter describing the Monterey capture and telling him to bring
at least one hundred armed guys to Monterey. Fremont he
showed up with one hundred and sixty. July fifteenth, commodore

(30:44):
Robert Stockton. He sailed in to take over from the
sixty five year old Slow as head of the squadron.
Slope made Stocking commander in chief of all landforces in California.
July nineteenth, Fremont and his crew they rode into Monterey
and met Slope on the Savannah. When Slope figured Fremont
had been acting on his own without clear orders from Washington, ummmmm,

(31:05):
he was shook and ducked out to his cabin. He said,
oh no, oh shit, oh no pussy.

Speaker 3 (31:11):
Twenty third of July, Stockton took Fremont's group plus former
Bear Flaggers, officially turned them into the Naval Battalion of
Mounted Valineer Rifflemen. Wow, with Fremont as major in charge
of the California Battalion. This was her crew he'd built
from his survey team and Bear Flag Republic volunteers, about
four hundred and twenty eight men. Stockton hooked them up

(31:32):
with the Fisher United States military status and sold your pay.

Speaker 2 (31:35):
Look at that shit. It just into the army, dude,
I'm going to war. Freemont, with about one hundred and
sixty of his men, hopped up a ship, hopped on
a ship to San Diego, teamed up with Stockton's Marines
and took Los Angeles August thirteenth. Nice After that, Fremont
headed north to round up more Californians from his Ballattalion Battalion.

(31:55):
Later in late forty six, Stockton sent Fremont with three
hundred more men just capture Santa bar Bro taking everything.
But by September, some Mexican Californians, led by Jose Maria Fleuries,
they weren't having it, and they fought back. Red took
Los Angeles and kicked the Americans out. Oh, things are
heating up in this little California region with the old Mexicanos.

(32:17):
Go to war.

Speaker 3 (32:18):
December eighteen, forty sixth United States Brigadier General Stephen Kearney
showed up in Cali with orders straight from President Polk
after taking New mago Pope told him go get California, baby,
and if he could conquer it all, we're gonna set
up a civil government.

Speaker 2 (32:34):
We're gonna have a formal government here then, yeah, they
claim for real.

Speaker 3 (32:39):
Kearney had already forced down from three hundred to one
hundred dragoons, based on dispatches from Kit Carson that he
was carrying to Washington. Carson's intel said it's stocked in
Frema had California under control.

Speaker 2 (32:50):
They clearly for good. We're all set for this fake
gold boom. You guys are gonna set up here in
a couple of years. Well, Carson didn't know what's The
Californians had revolted, and that set Kearney up for a
rough fight. At the Battle of San Pasquell, Mexican Lancers
were waiting and ready to fight. It was a disaster.

(33:11):
Karney lost nineteen guys. He got seriously stabbed himself. Hmmm,
that makes sense fighting Mexicans get stabbed, right. I stabbed
you so bad. You wish I had stabuted so bad.

Speaker 3 (33:23):
Later, Stockton sent reinforcements to push back Popuco and his crew,
which helped Carny out been dead.

Speaker 2 (33:30):
Around this time, things got messy between Stockton and Kearny
over who was calling the shots for the military. Of course,
still they figured out how to team up to squash
the Los Angeles uprising. Gotta Meanwhile, old Freemont he was
doing his thing. On the night of December twenty fourth,
he led his unit through a crazy rainstorm over the
Santa Ynez Mountains at San Marco's Pass. It was a

(33:52):
mess tons of his horses, mules and cannon slid down
the muddy slopes, But the next morning his crew pulled
it together in the foothills which is now near Rancho
Dell Sierrbo, and it took the presidio, the city basically
of Santa Barbara, and the town without a single shot fired. Oh.
A few days later, Freemont he marched southeast towards Los Angeles.

(34:13):
He said, we're taking it back, baby.

Speaker 3 (34:16):
This happened on the thirteenth of January eighteen forty seven.
Freemont sealed the deal by accepting Andre's Picico surrender with
the Treaty of Chawenga Cahouenga, which ended the war in
Upper Kelly. But here's where it gets spicy, folks, a
little spicy. Kearney ordered Freemont to join his military dragons.
But Freemont was like, nah, I wonder Stockton's command.

Speaker 1 (34:38):
Baby.

Speaker 2 (34:38):
Oh, and you guys they already don't like each other.

Speaker 3 (34:41):
Right, He straight up refused, thinking he answered to Stockton,
not Kearney, And drama was a brewin Kearney's.

Speaker 2 (34:46):
Like, bitch, I'm your superior. I run shit. January sixteenth,
eighteen forty seven after the Treaty of Cahuenga Commodore, Stockton
named Freemont the military governor of California, and then he said,
I'm getting out of here. Fremont he was running things
smoothly for a few weeks, but he was strapped for
cash to actually do the governor gig. What he and

(35:07):
Stockton didn't know was that the Navy Department had sent
orders to Slope and his replacements to set up a
military rule in California. Well, there was a problem there.

Speaker 3 (35:16):
Orders came after Kearney's orders to take charge of the place,
which Kearney didn't have enough troops to enforces authority, so
he had to lean on Stockton's marines in Fremont's California
Battalion until more army guys showed up.

Speaker 2 (35:28):
Well, he might have been in charge, but he wasn't.

Speaker 3 (35:31):
Right on the thirteenth of February, Washington, they were like,
all right, we're gonna send some specific orders. We're gonna
give him to the General Winfield Scott Kearney. You got
the green light to be a military governor. Oh, but
Kearney didn't exactly sly those orders to over to Fremont
to keep him in a loop.

Speaker 2 (35:50):
Well, Kearney did tell Fremont to enlist his California Battalion
into the US Army and to bring all his battalion
records to Kearney's headquarters in Monterey. Fremont, though, he was
dragging his feet, crossing his fingers that Washington would send
word for him to stay on as governor. Plus is
California battalion, and was like, we're not joining the army,
Why would we do that? Right? Freemont even told his

(36:10):
guys not to hand over the weapons and rode to
Monterey to face Kearney, saying he'd followed orders. Saying he'd
follow orders, okay. Meanwhile, Kearney he sent Colonel Richard Mason,
who was sent to take over as military governor. He
sent him to Los Angeles to check out in the
troops and give Fremont more instructions. But Freemont and Mason
were not vibing. But Freemont and Mason didn't get along,

(36:33):
and things got so heated that Fremont challenged Mason to
a duel. Oh, they said a date, but I got
postponed never to happen. Good, Holy, I imagine We're gonna
have to have a rain check on that duel.

Speaker 3 (36:45):
Well this, let Kearney show up in LA. When Freemont
asked to join the fight, make oh, Kearney shut him
down Instead, he ordered Fremont to march east with his armie.
When I got to Fort Leavenworth on the twenty second
of August eighteen forty seven, Fremont was a and hit
with Hodge is a mutiny?

Speaker 2 (37:02):
Damn? He sent him over there to get arrested.

Speaker 3 (37:04):
Yeah, disobeying orders, acting like he had more power than
he did, and a lot of other shit. Kareny sented
him to Washington to face a court martial. In the end,
on the thirty first of January eighteen forty eight, Fremont
cleared of mutiny, but got nailed for disabeting a spirit
officer and military misconduct.

Speaker 2 (37:23):
Well you should right, who are you anyways? Guy? Right? Well,
after the court martial, President Poke he stepped in and
softened the blow for Fremont. He agreed with the court's ruling,
but didn't think Fremont was guilty of mutiny, just disobeying orders. Right,
So Polk canceled the dishonorable discharge and let Fremont back
into the army, mostly because of his war contributions, so

(37:44):
he didn't do a lot good for you, Bud. Also,
Polk was trying to keep Fremont's father in law, who
was big shot Senator Thomas Benton, happy, since Benton was
convinced Fremont was innocent, right unlikely a big donor of
Polk most likely. But Fremont wasn't thrilled with just a
part pardon. He resigned his commission in protests and decided
to just settle in California. Are okay, I'm done fighting.

(38:06):
We'll watch this shit. Even after all that, though, the
American public at large said, we still like Fremont, right,
still like him. He did all these maps and stuff
for us. As usual.

Speaker 3 (38:16):
Historians, they're hitting messed with the guy, of course. Mary
Lee Spence and Donald Jackson, who edited a huge collection
of letters from Freedmont from Fremont and others during this time,
they said that Fremont as often right as wrong, it
happens right. They also pointed out that digging into the
court martial records shows nobody neither Fremont nor his opponents

(38:39):
came out looking great, so it was just a shit
show from the very beginning. Politics man, Right, Well, then
there's this historian Alan Evans who paints Kearney as a tough.

Speaker 2 (38:50):
Prickly guy who didn't make it many friends. He quotes
historian Justin Smith, all right, historian right, who called Kearney grasping,
jealous domin Aaron and harsh. With that kind of personality,
plus this thing of getting whooped at sand passed well
and his obsession with being in charge, Kearney clashed hard
with Stockton as soon as he hit Los Angeles. Yeah, Freemont,

(39:12):
he got sucked into the fight, and when Stockton left Freemont,
he was the one dealing with the whole mess Karney
taking his frustracings on stocking out on Freemont. What are
you gonna do?

Speaker 3 (39:22):
Right, Terrible, it's rough, spot man, Theodore are grievous. He
was scratching his head over how Fremont, an army officer,
faday navy guy like Stockton could shield him from getting
in hot water for disbaying his higher up Kearney. Right,
he says, it's kind of wild Freemont banked on that.
But Grievous also points out that the whole messy clash
between Kearny, Stockton and Freemont might have been avoided if

(39:45):
they had better ways to communicate back then. Just imagine
if they could have shot each other a quick text
or sorted out you know, or called him up on
the phone, or did a FaceTime or something. You know,
he's a little match, so to do with FaceTime. At
least we can still see each other.

Speaker 2 (40:02):
This is a little messed up, man. What do we
do in here? I mean, we're all for we got
the same goal online road Mertons after the whole court
Marsh from mass Fort, Marsh from mass Freemont. He was
dead set on clearing his name and getting back to
his explorer vibes and getting back to exploring in nineteen
forty eight eighteen forty eight. In eighteen forty eight, he

(40:23):
teamed up was old daddy in law Benton to push
their big manifest Danciny Dreams Again. Benton he was into
the idea of railroads and had been trying to get
the Senate to fund one from Saint Louis to San
Francisco along the thirty eighth parallel. You're gonna do it regardless,
since both cities were They're just like straight Cross. When
Benton couldn't get the government to pony up, Freemont found

(40:44):
private investors bank roll instead. October eighteen forty eight, he
set off with thirty five guys headed up to Missouri,
Kansas and Arkansas Rivers to scout the land. He brought
along the artist brothers Edward and Richard and Benjamin Kern.
But this he couldn't get his old trusty sidekickslash guy
th kick Carson, Oh, kit Carson. He was busy. Yeah,

(41:06):
it's a bummer.

Speaker 3 (41:09):
When they got to Ben's Fork, pretty much every trapper
there told Fremont, get the hell out of here. Turn back, boy.
That was already right. There was already a foot of
snow on the ground. The mountains were looking like a
snowy nightmare.

Speaker 2 (41:22):
Fremont was like, I'm on a mission, baby, and I'm
about to prove that a railroad along thirty eighth parallel
would work year round. Baby.

Speaker 3 (41:31):
So he hired Uncle Dick Wooten as a guy. At
Ben's Fork, he picked up the quicker old Bill Williams
and what's now Pueblo, Colorado. And he kept on pushing along,
kept on coping on, kept on something I can't keep
on a truck, and you keeping on, keep on, keeping on,
keeping on the galling. If Freemont had stuck to Kansas River,
he might have pulled it off button On twenty fifth
of November what's now Florence, Colorado, he made a sharp

(41:53):
turn south.

Speaker 2 (41:55):
And by the time they crossed Sangrey des Crystal Range
through the Mosca Path, they were dealing with brutal cold, built,
blinding snow and rough terrain. Some of the crew, including
Wutan or Wooting, they bailed, saying it was impossible to
keep going. What are we doing? Well? You know it's
not good. Well. Tragically, Benjamin Kern and old Bill Williams
they got killed by Ute warriors while backtracking to Fine

(42:18):
Gearan survivors shit even through. Even though the Sangrey Day
Crystal passes were too steep for a railroad three months
like I know, I can do it, too stubborn to
not do it well.

Speaker 3 (42:32):
They could have made it if they gone up to
the Rio Grand to its source, or taking aim more
northern route, but instead they ended up at the top
of a Messa Mountain. By December twelfth, on Boot Mountain.
It was so bad it took ninety minutes to move
just three hundred yards. Us started dropping dead, and by
the twentieth of December only fifty nine animals were left.

(42:54):
It wasn't until December twenty second that Freemont finally admitted
they needed to regroup and get supplies. They started limping
toward Taos in New Mexico Territory. By the time the
last survivors staggered into Taos on felt twelfth February eighteen
forty nine, ten guys had died and the survivors had
to eat them.

Speaker 2 (43:13):
The staleives. Gotta do what you gotta do. Oh wow.
If it wasn't for Alexis Godey's efforts, another fifteen would
have been goners. After recovering in Taos, Fremont and just
a handful of his crew headed to California via Southern
Trade Route well Edward and Richard Kern, though on a
side note, they joined a military expedition with Jay H.

(43:34):
Shimpson in the Navajos in eighteen forty nine. They sketched
some of the first real images of Arizona, New Mexico,
and southern Colorado for the American public nice, which included
the Canyon Decelli Cheko Canyon and the El Moro, which
is now known as Inscription Rock, Oh. Despite the rough expedition,
Fremont's rep as an explorer held up. In eighteen fifty,

(43:56):
the Royal Geographical Society gave him their Patron's Medal for
all of exploratory work. Look at them trying to make
his name. Jeez, I might not be a good military guy,
but I can explore, dammit kind of.

Speaker 4 (44:10):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (44:11):
February tenth, eighteen forty seven, we're going back now. Fremont
dropped three thousand dollars about eighty three grand today's money.
He did that on his seventy square mile chunk of
land and the Sierra Hills through a land speculator named
Thomas Larkin. They called it Las Mariposas, or the Butterflies. Well,
this is because the minorch butterflies are flypping all around.

(44:33):
The land used to belong to a former California governor,
Juan Bautista Evado and his wife, Martina Damn. Fremont was
hoping it was close to San Francisco or Mount or Ay,
but he was boomed to find out it was way
in land near Yosemite. Damn, right on the Miwalk Indians
hunting and gathering.

Speaker 2 (44:51):
Oh no evenvoice. After his eighteen forty eight Court Marshal,
he moved to Lost Mary Posta's and got in a ranching.
This is before his expedition. Apparently he borrowed cash from
his father in law and Senator John Dix to build
a house, corral, and barn. He even offered a salt,
even ordered a sawmill, shipped it over on the Aspen
Wall Steamer Fredonia, and set it up at his house

(45:15):
and his land. Then some Mexicans from Sonora tipped him
off that there was gold on his land. Fremont, this
dude suddenly got gold falling out of his pockets a
five mile quartz. Vain was spitting out hundreds of pounds
of placer gold every single monthn he just struck it rich.
He's good for him.

Speaker 3 (45:34):
Eighteen fifty one, Highland Hall, which was an ex governor
of Vermont, got appointed to head of Federal Commission starting
out Mexican land titles in California. He went to San
Francisco to start the job, and his son in law
Trnor Park, tagged along. I want to go, daddy, and
Daddy Fremont hired Park to man his day to day

(45:54):
at the last Mariposa, and they brought in Mexican workers
to pan for the gold, giving them a cut of
the profits. While all this was going on, Old Fremont
he also scooped up a big land holding in San Francisco.
He's living lodge in Monterey, working his gold ranch and
drinking his lip whiskey and fucking his women.

Speaker 2 (46:16):
Well he just got a wife. Doesn't matter. It didn't
last long because here comes to drama. Oh it's always
got to happen. Legal fights started popping off over property
and mineral rights. Of course, squatters rolled into Los Mariposa's
mining gold leg it was their own. Oh wow. There
was confusion about whether the three mining districts on the
land were public domain, and the Mercid Mining Company was

(46:38):
straight up mining on Fremont's property too the hell. Yet,
on top of that, the land's borders were fuzzy because
Alvarado had bought it on a floating grant from Mexico.
Plus they never even actually lived there, which Mexican law required.
Oh wow. Also, all this got dragged to the courts
for years, into the Supreme Court finally rooted in Fremont's
favor in eighteen fifty six, said my gold, this is

(47:00):
all mine? Right? Wow.

Speaker 3 (47:03):
Well, winning that case allowed him to keep his fortune,
but pissed off a lot of his neighbors. In the
late eighteen fifties, Frederick Billings, a partner at the Hellick,
Peachey and Billings law firm where Park worked, teamed up
with Fremont and a few successful business deals good for him.
Billiings also tried to sell shares of Fremont's Mariposa mine

(47:24):
in Europe, but kept striking out. When Civil War came around,
Billings stepped up as Fremont's agent, helping him buy arms
in England for Union troops. When Fremont took it upon
himself to get involved, of.

Speaker 2 (47:36):
Course he did. Wow, look this guy going to England
buying rifles. Oh, before we get to the old Civil War,
let's take a look at his short, short time as
senator in California. Remember thirteenth, eighteen forty nine. I guess
it's way before the Civil War. But General Bennett Riley,
without getting the green light from Washington, called for a
state election to lock in California's new state constitution. Right

(47:59):
by December twentieth, the California legislature was ready to pick
two senators rept Estate in DC. Freemont he was the
big favorite. He was a free soil Democrat, a Western legend,
and seen by a lot of folks as the guy
who got screwed over by an unfair court martial. Dude,
let's give him his due and give him a senator spot.

Speaker 3 (48:17):
Well, the other guys that were running t Butler king
it was a wig. William Gwinn with Democrat Fremont cruise
to the first Senate seat, nabbing twenty nine out of
forty one votes, while Gwenn with some other southerns with
some Southern sport he had twenty four votes for second place.
They drew Straws's side, who got the longer term. Gwynn

(48:38):
lucked out, leaving Fremont with the shorter one.

Speaker 2 (48:40):
Oh it's a hell boy, right, I Owen Washington. Freemont,
who bought his California ranch from yesh. He pushed for
a law that would have automatically validated Mexican land grants,
but it didn't pass. Of course, he also back to
shady Law, which was nicknamed Freemont's Gold Bill, that would
have stopped foreign workers from owning gold claims, which was

(49:01):
super convenient since his ranch was in gold country. Right
on the flip side, he had voted against tough penalties
for people helping run away slaves and supported ending the
slave trade in DC.

Speaker 3 (49:10):
Okay, good for him worrying about something this three thousand
miles well back in Cally, the pro slavery Democrats known
as the Shives were not fans of Fremont when they
backed Solomon Hide and Fight to block his re election.
Fremont rushed back to Cali, even starting his own newspaper,
San Jose Daily, argus he.

Speaker 2 (49:32):
Wanted to fight the Shivs.

Speaker 3 (49:34):
But guess what, the old racist Democrats couldn't beat them. Right,
He couldn't pull enough votes to keep his Senate seat.
Neither Heidenfelt nor t Butler King, who was also running again,
got a majority, so Gwynn he ended up as California
was only senator.

Speaker 2 (49:49):
For a bit. Oh wow. A year later, the Ship
supported John Weller took the Senate seat from Fremont had held,
and Fremont's time and Senate was very short, just one
and seventy five days September tenth, eighteen fifty to March third,
eighteen fifty one, and he only spent twenty one actual
working days in DC. A nothing shows like Lees say,
it sounds like a normal senator. Well, in the fall

(50:13):
of eighteen fifty three, Freemont he's back at it, heading
out on another expedition to figure out if a trans
continent a railroad along the thirty eighth parallel could actually
work okay again. He and his crew bounced between Missouri
and San Francisco, hitting up some known trails and a
bunch of uncharted land. The big goal was across the
Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada in the dead of winter,

(50:34):
to see how much snow they'd be dealing with and
whether a railroad could handle the winter trips. Nope, Fremont
he brought along Solomon Nunez Carvallo, who was a photographer.
They called them back then, the De Guerrero typists. I guess,
he said, document the journey for us, buddy, Yeah, I'd

(50:54):
be nice, all right.

Speaker 3 (50:55):
They started off on the Santa Fe Trail, swinging by
Ben's Fort before heading west in the colorade O Sana
Louis Valley. From there, they picked up the North branch
of the Old Spanish Trail cross Continental Divide at Coachatopa
Pass kept pushing into Central Utah. Snow was no joke, though, guys.
It was tough to follow the trail. Every now and

(51:18):
then they spot signs of Captain John Gunson's expedition, which
had come through just a few months earlier.

Speaker 2 (51:24):
Ooh, I think they went this way. There was firewood
or weeks of brutal cold and heavy snow slowed them
down big time, big time. They had the ditch extra gear.
One guy, he didn't even make it. By the time
the worn out crew stumbled into the Mormon settlement of

(51:44):
Paiwan and Southeastern Utah, Western Utah February eighth, eighteen fifty four.
They were beat kicked back and Parwan for two weeks
to get their strength back, then kept moving across the
Great Basin, hitting the Owens Valley near what's now Big Pine, California.
Big Pine on the east side of the Sierra Nevada.

Speaker 3 (52:01):
All right, all right, well, Freemont then let him south
across the Sierras, followed the Kern River drainage west into
the San Joaquin Valley. Finally, on the sixteenth April eighteen
fifty four, they rolled into San Francisco. Freemont was stoked,
having made it through a winter track across the mountains.
He was convinced they railroad along forty eighth parallel could work,

(52:24):
and that winter travel through the Rockies was doable.

Speaker 2 (52:27):
He's like, if we could do it, then a train can.
On eighteen fifty six, at the age of forty three,
he became the first ever presidential candidate for the brand
new Republican Party. Look at that which started in eighteen
fifty four. Republicans, they were all about standing up to
the Pierce administration and stopping slavery from spreading into the West. Sure,

(52:47):
at first, some big Democratic players like ex Virginia Governor
John Floyd and the powerful Preston family, and they tried
to get Fremont to run as their guy. Oh, Fremont
was like, nope, I'm all about free soil Kansas against
the eighteen fifty future slave law. Ooh right.

Speaker 3 (53:04):
Republican heavyweights like Nathaniel Banks, Henry Wilson, John Bigelow, they
convinced Fremont to jumped to their side. They wanted a
fresh face in the United Front. So at their June
eighteen fifty six invention in Philly. They picked Fremont for
president over other contenders, and they tapped conservative William Dayton
from New Jersey for VP. Their campaign slogan free soil,

(53:29):
Freemen and Fremont fortuned for free homesteads and rallying against
the slave power. Fremont aka the Pathfinder, was a total
rock star with voters and basically the face of the
Republican body. And then the Democrats they went with James Buchanan.

Speaker 2 (53:47):
Well we know won that one. Freemont's wife Jesse, along
with John Bigelow and Isaac Sherman. They ran his campaign
like a bunch of pros. Jesse, being a senator's daughter
raised in DC, she knew the political game way better
than Fremont. Obviously, people treated her like a legit political boss,
while Fremont came off as kind of a rookie, which
he was. She got way more attention than most potential

(54:09):
first ladies, and the Republicans hyped her up, calling her
are Jesse. They ran a good campaign, but Jesse couldn't
get her dad, Senator Benton, to back Fremont. What what
and gave props to Fremont, But he ended up supporting Buchanan,
which obviously uh Democrat. Fremont a little bummed out about daddy.
He helped me all through all this stuff. He couldn't

(54:30):
even back me for my most important time in my life.
All right, well, Fremont, Like it was back then, None
of the candidates, including Fremont, and then they even hit
the campaign trail themselves.

Speaker 3 (54:42):
That wasn't the vibe in the eighteen hundreds. They just
sent people to do the dirty work. He mostly stayed
at his place on fifty six Wet Street in New
York City. The Republicans focused hot on forcet wing states Pennsylvania,
New Jersey, Indiana, and Illinois.

Speaker 2 (54:58):
This isn't our.

Speaker 3 (54:59):
Big name to slam the Democrats for backing slavery and
ditching the Missouri Compromise. The old Democrats known the plan
went hard into those states too, running a nasty media
campaign and even illegally naturalizing thousands of immigrants in Pennsylvania
to booster votes.

Speaker 2 (55:16):
Oh my gosh, are we reading about twenty twenty. As
most campaigns do, this one got ugly. Democrats went low
attacking Fremont's illegitimate birth sheees, and they spread rumors he
was Catholic. Oh, they trashed his military record and warned
his wind would spark a civil war. Yeah. Behind closed doors,

(55:38):
there was wild talk that Fremont leading a huge army
to backslave rebellions, slaves getting lynched, or slaves hoping to freedom,
hoping for freedom and equality if he won. Meanwhile, Freemont's
campaign was based near his home by the Clifton Fiery
Landing and Saint George, with big rallies on the lawn
it's now the corner of Greenfield Avenue in Bay Street.

Speaker 3 (56:00):
In the end, Fremont lost the Buchanan in a three
way race on the fourth of November eighteen fifty six.
Buchanan one million, eight hundred and thirty six thousand, seventy
two votes one hundred and seventy four electoral votes, while
Fremont pulled in one million, three hundred and forty two
three one million, three hundred forty two thousand and three
and forty five votes, one hundred and fourteen electoral votes,

(56:20):
and old Millard Fillmore running for the American Know Nothing Party,
he was the third yay, uh, you got there's something
there from Freemont won eleven states. Buchanan took nineteen Freemont
didn't even carry his home state Cali. The Democrats were
just better organized and the Republicans were scraping by unlimited cash.

Speaker 2 (56:42):
After the election, Fremont he added back to Cali and
dove it into his mind in business as well as
a state. Cool. I'm still rich right at this time.
People are saying it's worth a whopping ten million dollars,
which is puku money today. When the Civil War kicked off,
Fremont it was in over in Europe, trying to drum
up investors for his lost Mariposa's gold ranch. President Lincoln

(57:04):
thought about making Fremont the US Minister to France, figuring
in his French roots and his anti slavery stance, which
was super popular in Europe, would be a win. Okay, well,
Secredary of State William Henry Seward. Seward he wasn't feeling
Fremont's radical vibe and shutting that idea down. Ooh. Instead,
in May fifteenth, eighteen sixty one, Lincoln he said, Freemont,

(57:25):
I'll name you a major general in the Union Army.
How about that? Yeah? Work well, Freemont I got back
to Boston from England June twenty seventh, and by July first,
Lincoln punterman in charge of the Department of the West,
which covered everything from the Appalachian Mountains all the way
to the Mississippi. M not west at all, just immediately, dude.

Speaker 3 (57:44):
Once Freemont hit Washington, DC, he sat down with Lincoln
General Winfield Scott talk strategy. Fremont came up with a
plan to kick all the Confederates out of Missouri. Didn't
launch a bay campaign down the mississip aiming from Memphis.
He later said that Lincoln gave him to freedom to
run the show, however, he wanted chatting about it right
on the White House steps. Fremont's top priority as head

(58:08):
of the Western Armies was to hold Cairo, Illinois, no
matter what. It was the key for Union to put
south along the Mississippi. I believe so that makes sense,
all right.

Speaker 2 (58:19):
Well, both Fremont and a subordinate General Pope John Pope,
they were convinced Ulyssesis Grant was the toughest nails general
they needed the lockdown Missouri. Freemont. He also had to
deal with General Nathaniel Lyon, a real firecracker who's aggressive, irregular,
tactics stirred up Missouri's messy mix of loyalties. That was
a headache waiting to happen. Yeah, these two didn't get along.

(58:39):
It' July twenty fifth, eighteen sixty one, freemont rolling the
old Saint Louis to officially take charge to the Department
of the West. And guess what, it was a mess.
The dude forty eight years old. He had great hair. Yeah,
they say he was still pretty good looking man, and
he was carrying his big rep as a pathfinder of
the West from his eleven years and mapping out the frontier.

(59:01):
Look at this guy. His main gig, well, you guessed it.
He kicked the Confederate forces out of Missouri. That's what
he was there to do. But here's the deal. He
was stuck in a slave state where a ton of
folks weren't loyal to the Union. Yeah, so he had
only a few Union soldiers, supplies and weapons to work with.
He's out numbered. Yeah. In the territory as a home Missouri,

(59:23):
gorilla fighting was popping off everywhere. Two Confederate armies were
gearing up to take Springfield and maybe even try to
invade Illinois to snatch Caro free Month's job was huge,
but his resources were slim. Missouri's secession crisis felt like
it was a spiral line out of control. He was
tasked with protecting Missouri and the entire Northwest. On top
of that, his mission was to pull together an army,

(59:43):
get it equipped, lead it down to the Mississippi, reopened
trade routes, and cut off the western trunk of the Confederacy.
Robin was he only had twenty three thousand guys and
the volunteer three month enlistments were about to run out.
And you know, probably not many of them are coming back. Ah.

Speaker 3 (59:57):
Some Western governors send him more troops, but Freemont have
enough guns to arm them. There were no uniforms, barely
any gear. Soldiers were dealing with food, Russians, crappy transportation,
and guess what, worst.

Speaker 2 (01:00:10):
Of all, no page paychecks. Make things worse. His intel
was way off. His intel people were making them think
that the Missouri militia and Confederate forces were twice as big.
Every what was up in these guys had twice as
big as they really were. When he showed up to
Saint Louis to take over the department, he brought this
fancy aristocratic vibe that had folks raising their eyebrows and grumbling,

(01:00:31):
Oh long Street, huh all right, Yeah, things got messy
quick when he butted heads with Frank Blair, who was
a big deal from the powerful Blair family. I'm a
big deal. Plus he was a brother of one of
Lincoln's cabinet members. Oh shit. Blair, trying to control Missouri politics,
started bad mouthing Fremont to Washington, saying he was extravagant,
running a command full of horde of pirates, ripping off
the army. Oh, get the fuck out here. He had

(01:00:52):
nothing that stirred up enough noise that Lincolnson adju General
Lorenzo Thomas to check things on. What's he talking about
down there? Came back?

Speaker 3 (01:01:01):
He said, well, Fremont was dropping the ball and making
sketchy army purchages.

Speaker 2 (01:01:05):
Oh shit. It blew up into a huge national scandal,
and Lincoln's like, come on, man, I need re election.
Fremont couldn't get a grip on supply mess either. He's like,
come on, man, it's eighteen sixty one, I need election.
Re election.

Speaker 3 (01:01:18):
A Congression Oak subcommittee led by Elou Washburn, plus a
later War Claims Commission. They dug into the Western Department
and confirmed a lot of Blair's accusations. They were, in fact, legit,
got ourselves a cowboy on our hands. Fremont was running
at Saint Louis headquarters like he was some European king.

(01:01:40):
Maybe it was because he'd spent time in France before
Lincoln gave him the job. He run into this swinky
mansion for about six thousand dollars a year. She's paid
for by the government.

Speaker 2 (01:01:52):
And yeah, it was guarded by Hungarian and a Tanley
soldiers in flash of uniforms. What wow over in Italy?
No in Saint Louis or in France, in Saint Louis,
What the fuck is Hungarian and Italian people? Lewis they God?
Reguard this for me? I even put together a three
hundred man bodyguard of Kentucky guys, pick for how good

(01:02:15):
they looked. Fremont surrounded himself with his California buddies, who
were making bank by landing army contracts without the usual
competitive bidding required by the law. Oh look at this guy.
One Californian got a deal to build thirty eight mortar boats,
build mortar boat instead of a bitch, And that was
and fifty dollars each, which is about one hundred thousand

(01:02:35):
dollars nowadays at least, which is way more than they're worth. Wow.
Another personal friend of Freemont's was zero Construction Experience. He
scored a one hundred ninety one thousand contract to build
forts that should have cost a third of that. Oh, Mike,
what are you doing? Fremont Dreamont? What are you doing?
Will Fremonts go to suppliers?

Speaker 3 (01:02:51):
They were getting insane deals for stuff like railroad cars, horses, mules, tents,
also gear, most of it pretty low quality.

Speaker 2 (01:03:02):
And paying top dollar or two. Rumors even start swirling
in DZ that Freemont was planting to start his own
republic or an empire out With't doubt it.

Speaker 3 (01:03:11):
His supply guy, you guessed at Major Justice mcinstry. He
also got heat for shady properteering. Fremont's biographer, Ellen Evans
he says a lot of this mess wasn't totally Freemont's vault.
The Western Department was a brand new setup, no structure,
no war supplies, and barely any trained recruits. Plus the
War Department under Lincoln's first Secretary of Simon Cameron.

Speaker 2 (01:03:33):
It was a hotbed of wasting corruption.

Speaker 3 (01:03:36):
Still Fremont, he was in over his head with this one. Boys, smokes,
let's cool.

Speaker 2 (01:03:43):
I'm back in May. This hot headed regular Army Captain
Nathaniel Lyon, who we mentioned, He's out here acting on
his own, leading troops to nab a llegal Missouri State
militia group camped in a Saint Louis suburb. Things got ugly.
Some civilians ended up dead during the raid. Oh shit,
Missouri hadn't officially ditched the Union yet, but Lincoln he
promoted Lyon to brigadier general anyway and put him in
temporary charge of the Department of the West. Oh Lion,

(01:04:07):
he was all about flex and muscle to keep Missouri loyal.
So he basically declared war on the succession Lean and
Guvnor something you shouldn't do. Claiborne Jackson. He chased him
all the way to the Ozarks.

Speaker 3 (01:04:19):
Lion took over Jefferson City, which was the state capitol,
and he set up a pro Union government. But then
he got himself stuck in Springfield with just six thousand men,
including Colonel Franz Siegel and his German Corps.

Speaker 2 (01:04:34):
Things were looking dicey. Boys. Well that's when Fremont comes
over and takes over the department is top worry. He
was keeping Carro Illinois. Like we said, it was super
critical for the Union's war plans out west, but it
didn't have enough troops to fend off a Confederate attack.
Fremont's forces were all spread out and disorganized compared to Confederates.
He told Lyon to pull back from Springfield to Ralla,

(01:04:55):
sent extra troops to beef up Carrow instead of helping Lion,
who was begging for reinforce. Shits Fremont. He wasn't totally off.
He did have solid intel that the Confederates were iron
they were. They were going after Carrol and eventually with
three hundred or three million men, right. But Lion, being
Lyon as Lion does, he decided to go rogue. He

(01:05:17):
attacked the Confederate at General Sterling Price at the Battle
of Wilson's Creek, which we did instead of retreating. Big
mistake though, was his Lion got shot through the heart
died on spot. He sure did. Union line fell apart,
kind of like the First Battle bow Run and the
Old Confederates, they took the w they grabbed Springfield and
opening up a western Missouri for their advance. Fremont caught

(01:05:41):
a ton of heat for the loss and for Lion's death.

Speaker 3 (01:05:44):
Yeah, people were pissed that he sent troops to Carroll
instead of backing Lion. Six thousand men who were just
ten miles south of Springfield. Serious trouble. They were in
tough call but didn't land well.

Speaker 2 (01:05:57):
He shuld probly sending reinforcements. Guy what a name? Oh? With
the Confederates Missouri state militia causing all kinds of trouble Freemont,
he was scrambling to hold it together. He started raising
volunteer troops, buying weapons and gear off the open market,
and he even sent his wife Jetson to DC to
beg President Lincoln for more reinforcement. Do what you gotta do.
Suck that man's right. Have you seen his wife? Oh?

(01:06:20):
I always juggling command of the Department of the West.
Freemont needed a solid brigader general to take charge of
the Caro post. At first, he was leaning toward John Pope,
but his guy, Major McKinstry suggested checking out this low
key brigadier general. Nobody knows yet. Ulysses has Grant the
best thing he's ever done. Look at that shit now,
U listen. He had a rep in the old Army.

Speaker 3 (01:06:39):
It was a bit of a drifter and drunk, yeah,
but unfounded right. But Freemont wasn't to judge him off rumors.
He sized Grant up himself, saw something different. He was
a guy who didn't brag, He stayed steady. He had
this iron will.

Speaker 2 (01:06:54):
That just just glowed up him when he walked into
the room. So Freemont he picked Grant and put him
in charge of Caro by the end of August of
eighteen sixty one. Right after that, Fremont sent Grant to
Ironton with three thousand Green troops. He said, I want
you to block a possible confurtherate move by General William Hardy.
He's coming, He's coming hard He's got about four million men.

(01:07:16):
He's coming Hardy. Just after a week after the disaster
of Wilson's Creek, Freemont he sent Grant to Jefferson City
to keep it locked down from a potential attack by
Old Sterling Price. Grant rolled in took charge like a
boss that he is trilling the troops whipping him in
the shape, boosting supply lines, and setting up defenses around
the city. Thanks to his work, Jefferson City stayed secure,

(01:07:38):
especially since the Price and his crew were already beat
up from Wilson's Creek and they ended up pulling back anyways,
That's probably why they stayed scared. Grant, though he's proven
he was the real deal.

Speaker 3 (01:07:48):
With the old rebel general Sterling Price pulling back, Fremont,
he said, Ah, here's our chance. We need to get aggressive.
We're gonna go on the tack boys. He knew the
real key to winning in the Wes was getting control
of the Mississippi River. Yeah, Fremont, he decided to take
on rebel General Leonidas Pope head on. He wanted to
lock down the main stretch of the Mississippi. August twenty seventh,

(01:08:09):
eighteen sixty one, and a huge moment for the Civil War,
Fremont handed Ulysses S. Grant Field command of a big
Union offensive aimed at capturing Memphis, Vicksburg, and Nolans.

Speaker 2 (01:08:21):
The goal, you ask, well, he wanted to keep Missouri
and in always safe from the old rebel attacks.

Speaker 3 (01:08:27):
By August thirtieth, Grant, he was officially in charge of
the Union army on the Mississippi.

Speaker 2 (01:08:32):
Fremont's go ahead, Grant moved fast and took Paducah, which
is in Kentucky, with thought we even fired one single shot.

Speaker 3 (01:08:40):
This was after polk had messed up by breaking Kentucky's
neutrality and grabbing Columbus.

Speaker 2 (01:08:46):
Yeah. Polpe, Yeah, you guys remember, messed around and did
some shit in Kentucky and Kentucky was like, we're going
with the Union now.

Speaker 3 (01:08:54):
He thought he can get away with that shit and
didn't get into it. Grant's move was so slick that
it pushed the Kentucky legislator stick with the Union.

Speaker 2 (01:09:01):
Guess what, that's a big win for the old Blue
Coats and need as many states we can get, and
they gave him as many battles of whiskeys. Fremont he
was itching to turn things around for the Union after
he got hit hired at the Battle of Wilson's Creek
and lost Lexington as well. He's got something prove. He
rounded up about forty thousand troops set out to take
back Springfield October twenty fifth, eighteen sixty one. His forces

(01:09:24):
led by Major Charles Zagoni's first time we're hearing this guy.
He pulled off a win at the First Battle of Springfield.
Maybe not because we did that battle. It was the
only Union victory in the West the whole year, so
as you can imagine, and eighteen sixty one that was
littered with no wins basically, so obviously there's a big
deal here. Yeah, the old Blue Coats getting their asses whooped. Well.

Speaker 3 (01:09:44):
On November first, Fremont he told Grant he wanted him
the stage of demonstration against Belmont, which was a steamboat
landing across the river from Columbus. He said, I want
you to try and push the old Confederate General Stirling Price.
I wanted my out in Missouri. Thing is though Grant
had already wanted to hit Columbus earlier, but Freemont had
shut down that plan. Wow, now Fremont was giving him

(01:10:06):
the green light. He goes make some noise. Oh u,
this is as Grant, oh.

Speaker 2 (01:10:11):
Us, Well, Freemont, he was in a real mess out
in Missouri. Still, the Confederates had control of like half
the state, their guys Price and McCulloch. They were ready
to pounce any second, dame right, Plus we know about
the rebel gorillas. They're causing total chaos, derailing trains, cutting
telegraph lines, burning bridges more ways than one, rava ravaging farms,

(01:10:31):
and attacking Union posts left and right. Damn it, it
was bad. Yeah. Who's that guy? My Quantrell raiders dude. Yeah,
the stronger slave holding counties were full of Confederate sympathizers
and that needed to be shut down. Can't be having nap.
Thousands of Union loyalists were fleeing totally broke to Illinois, Iowa,
and Kansas just to get away from the Confederate mayhem.
Dame right. Freemont's radical buddies and his wife Jesse. They're

(01:10:55):
pushing him hard to free the slaves of anyone supporting
the Confederates. They're saying, these guys are rebels. The Constant
doesn't protect them anymore, so we can legally take their property,
including their slaves. Right, Yeah, seasoned desist baby, seize it shit. Wow.

Speaker 3 (01:11:09):
So at the crack of dawn on the thirtieth of
August eighteen sixty one, Fremont he said, we're going for it, boys,
without even giving Lincoln heads up.

Speaker 2 (01:11:16):
He declares Marshal Lawn, Missouri probably something you shouldn't done.
Proclamation was intense. Anyone caught fighting against the old Blue
Coats would face a court.

Speaker 3 (01:11:24):
Martial and possibly execution. Anyone helping the successionists would lose
the property. But here's the biggest one. Every slave of
the rebels were immediately freed. The last part freaked people out,
like what, They're not even humans, They're savages. Kentucky, which
was still plain neutral, got super nervous. Unionists there thought

(01:11:45):
this would push their state right into the old Confederate arms.
Some folks in Louisville even begged Lincoln's buddy Joshua Speed
to tell them there's not a day to lose and
disavowing emancipation or Kentucky is gone over the mill dam.

Speaker 2 (01:12:00):
Right, let them keep their slaves for now. Guy, that's
basically what he's saying. You don't want to lose Kentucky. Right, Well, Lincoln,
he was sweating bullets, worried Freemont's move would make Missouri
and other border states jump ship to the Confederacy. He
asked Fremont to tone it down, but obviously by this
time we already know Freemont's a stubborn guy. He sent
his wife Jesse again to make his case of Lincoln,
but Lincoln wasn't having it. He told her Fremont never

(01:12:22):
should have brought slavery into this war. When Fremont still
wouldn't budge, Lincoln publicly yanked the emancipation part of the
proclamation on September eleventh. He said, all right, you gonna
want to do it yourself, I'll come out and do
it for you. Wow. Well, as I would imagine, this
pissed off Fremont's ebolitionist friends, who turned on Lincoln, making
things even mess here, and this is where they split,

(01:12:42):
not even re election time.

Speaker 3 (01:12:43):
Right on top of that, the Old War Department put
together a report calling out Fremont's screw ups in Missouri,
including how he arrested Frank Blair, which totally burned his
bridge with Blair family, who was even backing Lincoln for president.

Speaker 2 (01:12:57):
Back No back in Fremont, Fremont back in nineteen eighteen
fifty six. Damn Fremont getting a little in over his
head over here. Lincoln finally had enough. He decided Fremont
was done and sent his friend Leonard Sweat to personally
deliver the order, kicking Fremont out of his command in
the Western Department November two. That made a lot of
radical Republicans up north furious, including some of Lincoln's old

(01:13:19):
pals like Senator Orville Browning. Yeah. Later, Lincoln privately admitted
he felt for Fremont, saying, the first guy to shake
things up often goes too fire and crashes. Yeah, happens.
I admire you for shaking him up, but you got
a little carried away, buddy, right. He still saw that
Fremont overstep big time and put the Union in a
risky spot. It's too early in the war to be
doing that. Guy.

Speaker 3 (01:13:38):
After Lincoln gave Old Fremont the boot, Fremont packed up
from Springfield and headed back to Saint Louis. On the surface,
he was playing it cool y act like he was
stoked to be free from all the stress of the command.
But deep down, this guy he was fuming.

Speaker 2 (01:13:53):
He's pissed. It's like how these guys turn on me.
He was convinced the old Republicans were totally botching the war,
and that the Blairs, with some seriously shady motives, they
are the ones who got them canned. He thought Lincoln
probably all right, He thought Lincoln's decisions was straight up unfair.
It got worse though, talked about adding insult to injury.
Hit Zagouney Guard got kicked out of the Army without

(01:14:15):
even getting paid, and every contract he set up was
put on hold until Washington gave the green light. It's rough, damn,
that's tough out. Pretty soon the radicals and Fremont's loyal
supporters started making noise, pushing hard for him to get
back in the game with a new command. Oh right.
By March of eighteen sixty two, Lincoln cave and put
him in charge of the Mountain Department, covering parts of

(01:14:36):
western Virginia, eastern Tennessee, and eastern Kentucky. Man, you could
tell Lincoln wasn't exactly thrilled about it. He'd clearly lost
faith in the guy they used to call the path
Oh wow, he said, he the Pathfinder no more, He's
the screw up.

Speaker 3 (01:14:50):
Right, So guess what Fremont's He's back in action. Teamed
up with two other generals, Nathaniel P. Banks and Irvin McDowell.
You guys know what their job was. You guessed that
they wanted to keep the Chandoa Valley in Washington, DC.

Speaker 2 (01:15:02):
Safe.

Speaker 3 (01:15:03):
But instead of letting, one guy called shots. Lincoln and
Stanton our Micromanager never moved. These armies are making Confederate
General Stonewall Jackson sees a split comman and just bounces.
He starts off picking each Union army one by one.
This freaked out DC in Lincoln. They grabbed supplies and
took thousands of prisoners. The Confederates were just dominating. It

(01:15:25):
was a nightmare.

Speaker 2 (01:15:26):
Stonewall Jackson was just a killing it. Early June eighteen
sixty two, fremonts chasing Jackson for eight straight days trying
to catch him. He finally does at the Battlecross Keys,
going up against part of Jackson's force led by Richard
Ewell Fremont. He got about ten thousand, five hundred Union
troops while Eule's working a book about five thousand, but
Fremont probably thought they had fifty thousand. Okay, Fremont's coming

(01:15:47):
down the Valley Pike from the northwest through Harrisonburg. Another
Union general, James Shields He's closing in from the northeast,
opening to box Jackson in Eule, though he sets up
some seriously solid defenses to cover Jackson's western flank, not
today boys. June eighth, ten am Freemont. Since it's infantry,
most Germans, and they kick off the Battle of.

Speaker 3 (01:16:08):
Cross Keys, slowly pushing the Old Rebels back. The fifteenth
Alabama infantry holds them off for bowing about a half hour.
Then it turns into a long range artillery slug fest.

Speaker 2 (01:16:20):
Which we know.

Speaker 3 (01:16:20):
The Union at upper hand, but the Old Confederates, backed
up by the forty fourth Virginia.

Speaker 2 (01:16:25):
They fought off a few Union attacks.

Speaker 3 (01:16:28):
Freemont he goes all in with this big ass assault.
But the Old Confederates they said, you know what, we
may look stupid, but we're dumb. They played it smart.

Speaker 2 (01:16:39):
They hold their fire. They held their fire until the
Union soldiers are right in their faces.

Speaker 3 (01:16:45):
Then unleash a Brital volley that's in Fremont's guy reeling.
If you guys listen to that episode, it's crazy.

Speaker 2 (01:16:50):
Thousands of guns going literally off at the same time, insane.
Fremont pulls back, decided not to try another attack, and
the Old Rebels take over the ground. The Union held
wherever they did. Rebel yell right.

Speaker 3 (01:17:04):
Yule's crew with a small brigade keeping Fremont busy. He
got ordered from Jackson to fall back.

Speaker 2 (01:17:10):
To Port Republic Stonewalls like, buddy, we got it well.
The next day at that Battle of Port Republic, Fremont
he tried hitting Jackson's rear flank with some artillery, but
it doesn't go for a full on assault this time. Show.
By the afternoon, Jackson's already moving his army out to
Brown's gap, way out of range of Fremont's guns. Oh.
Somehow Jackson his whole army slipped out of the Shenandoa
Valley and link up with Robert E. Lee and Richmond.

(01:17:31):
Let him do it. Lincoln, he tells Shields and Fremont
to pull out of the valley completely. Freemont catches a
ton of heat again for being late to team up
with McDonald Strasburg, which let Jackson's army get away. It's
not looking well for old Fremont right now. They put
him back in command and he's just failing. Wow.

Speaker 3 (01:17:47):
Twenty sixth to June eighteen sixty two, they set up
the Army of Virginia and Fremont's Corps is supposed to
be part of it under John Pope's command. But Fremont,
he said, no way, dude to say, he was like,
I commanded this guy.

Speaker 2 (01:18:01):
He said, I'm a senior to this guy. There's no way.
And he's got some personal.

Speaker 3 (01:18:05):
Beaf too, of course, so he just bails and heads
New York City. He hangs out there for the rest
of the war waiting for another shot at a command,
but nothing ever.

Speaker 2 (01:18:15):
Dude, you bailed. Nobody's gonna be do a shit no more.

Speaker 3 (01:18:17):
Fast forward eighteen sixty three, wars taking a turn for
the Union. Some African Americans and Poughkeepsie.

Speaker 2 (01:18:23):
New York. They get this big idea.

Speaker 3 (01:18:25):
They're like, you know what, let's put together about ten
thousand man, all black army. We're gonna call it Fremont Legion.
We're gonna put Fremont in charge. They saw him as
a hero because of that bold move back in August
of eighteen sixty one when he tried to free slaves
in Missouri on his own.

Speaker 2 (01:18:41):
Look at that.

Speaker 3 (01:18:42):
But the whole Fremont Legion plan fizzles out, goes nowhere.
By June of eighteen sixty four, Fremont realizes he's not
gonna get another chance to help the Union Army, so
he says, you know what, I resign. I'm just gonna
collect my gold money freeze. Then he decides to run

(01:19:03):
for president in eighteen sixty four, booviously said it't so
well for him. Obviously, we know in eighteen sixty the
Republicans picked Abraham Lincoln. Fast forward to the next election
and he's running for re election. But the radical Republicans,
they're super pits that Lincoln for mentioned. There are stuff
we just mentioned.

Speaker 2 (01:19:20):
They think he's too soft on slavery and way too
legnient about bringing the Southern States back into the fold
after the war. They're still holding a grudge from eighteen
sixty one when Lincoln fired Fremont. Yeah, for the emancipation
these radicals. On May thirty first, eighteen sixty four, along
with some others, they formed the short lived Radical Democracy Party,
and of course they nominated Fremont, who's fifty one years old,

(01:19:41):
for president. Oh uh okay, Fremont, Well, Fremont, he's just
looking to get embarrassed, right.

Speaker 3 (01:19:49):
Freemont had a solid crew back in him, Radical Republicans,
German immigrants from out West, and War Democrats.

Speaker 2 (01:19:56):
This whole thing.

Speaker 3 (01:19:57):
Splits the Republican Party right down in the middle. One side,
you got the anti Lincoln radicals pushing for Fremont on
the DA you got the pro Lincoln Republicans sticking with
Old Island stab Now that Abe had actually stepped up
his game on slavery by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation on
twenty second September eighteen sixty two, which he was pretty
forced to do because they're getting their ass kicked, which

(01:20:19):
went into effect on the first of January eighteen sixty three,
by freeing the slave forever in the Confederate States. But
the old radicals, they still aren't satisfied Fremont. He sees
the writing on the wall and reluctantly drops out of
the race on twenty second in eighteen sixty four. In September.

Speaker 2 (01:20:36):
The very next day, what looks like a planned deal,
Lincoln boots the more conservative Montgomery Blair from his cabinet
to smooth things over. He's like, oh, we got ru
Ali Freemont. You can drop out and just stop fucking
hassling me with this and we'll get rid of Blair,
all right. She's on eighteen sixty four, John and Jesse
they buy a state ranch and what's now Sleepy Hollow,

(01:20:58):
New York from uh James and Webb, but was a
big shot newspaper publisher. They named the place Pokah, which
is an Indian name. Clearly for Jesse. It's all about
getting back that peaceful, charming vibe of country life, especially
since John's done with politics. Okay, the house is still standing,
that seven pokeho Drive in Sleepy Hollow, but it's a

(01:21:18):
private home now. Of course it is beautiful.

Speaker 3 (01:21:20):
February eighteen sixty six, one year after the war, Missouri
takes over the Pacific Railroad because the company could not
pay its debt. In June that very same year, the
state sells it the Freemont in a private deal. He
shakes things up, as he always does. He goes, you
know what, I'm gonna rename.

Speaker 2 (01:21:40):
This the Southwest Pacific Railroad.

Speaker 3 (01:21:43):
But less than a year later, in June of eighteen
sixty seven, the state snatches it back from free Mont
because guess what, he couldn't cover the second payment. Then
the Panic of eighteen seventy three hits total chaos from
too much gambling on railroads and the depression that follows.

Speaker 2 (01:21:59):
Just guts whatever money. Freemonts I'd left.

Speaker 3 (01:22:01):
Things get so tight that him and Jessey they had
to sell their estate in eighteen seventy five, and they
moved back to the city in New York.

Speaker 2 (01:22:08):
We'll past forward a few years. Eighteen seventy eight, President
Ruther F. B. Hayes he makes Fremont governor of the
Arizona Territory. He's there until eighteen eighty one, but barely
shows up. They tell him either get to work or
in person, or quit, and Freemont's like, I'm gone them, Well,
I don't need this no good. By this point, the
family's flat broke. They're learning or leaning hard on Jesse's

(01:22:29):
earnings from her writing to get by. We having a
lot of gold money. Why does this guy make up memoir? Right?
Fremont spends his retirement in Staten Island April eighteen seventy
at seventy seven, he gets a nice gesture from the
government as they reappoint him as a major general and
put him back on the payroll. Ok, I got his pension.
It's just like they did with.

Speaker 3 (01:22:48):
Grant Well thirteenth of July eighteen ninety dead from peratonitis.
He died at his house and on forty nine what's
twenty fifth Street in New York.

Speaker 2 (01:23:00):
It was sudden nobody really knew he was even sick.
The previous Tuesday.

Speaker 3 (01:23:03):
Which was the eighth of July, the crazy hot summer day,
it got to him.

Speaker 2 (01:23:07):
He was sweating, he was out of.

Speaker 3 (01:23:09):
Breath, really nauxious. Right by that next day and the
ninth of July, he had a chill. He couldn't get
out of bed.

Speaker 2 (01:23:17):
Turned out to be paratonitis, which was an abdominal infection.
Took him out, took him out, cut him down, crazy dude.
Just some antibiotics right nowadays, jam indigestics or something right.

Speaker 3 (01:23:29):
Everybody knew him as a pathfinder of the Rocky Moments.
He was first buried at Trinity Church Cemetery, but on
the seventeenth of March eighteen ninety one, they moved him
to Rockland Cemetery and sparkled New York. After he died,
Jesse got a ciple war pension that paid her two
thousand dollars a year worth about.

Speaker 2 (01:23:48):
Seventy thousand dollars. Now. It's crazy tough end for a
guy who lived such a wild life. You know. Freemont's
legacy is such a wild mix. Yeah, we've heard it.
It's like he's both a hero and a villain depending
on who's telling the story. He got to be right.
On one hand. He was huge and opening up the
American West for white settlers, but he did some shady
things as he ordered and took parts and attacks on

(01:24:08):
Native Americans. Yeah, dude, he fucked them up, killing men, women,
and children, pushing them off their land. Over time, he
became a big player in what people later called the
Native American genocide, especially in California, where his actions helped
drive the so called California Genocide. He was just slaughtered people. Wow.
Back in his heyday, people loved him. They called him

(01:24:28):
the Pathfinders. We sat for five time. He was basically
an American rock star.

Speaker 3 (01:24:34):
His detailed maps, his stories, scientific notes from the expeditions
were like GPS for the folks heading west starting their
new lives in the eighteen forties. A lot of people
thought he'd got a raw deal when he got arrested
and court martialed by Kearney during the Mexican American War,
but they got over it.

Speaker 2 (01:24:54):
During the Civil.

Speaker 3 (01:24:55):
War, his win against the Confederates at Springfield in eighteen
sixty one was the only bright spot for the Union
in the Western Department.

Speaker 2 (01:25:02):
That very year, sure did. They got their ice kicked everywhere.
And then he got sacked from the Mountain Department in
eighteen sixty two, and obviously even know his role in
the warm fizzled out. We saw him, dude. His one
probably good thing he did was put you, let's assess
grant and brought at him in eighteen sixty one. Why
are we talking about this again, Fremont. He also dumped
a ton of money into the railroads, but as we

(01:25:24):
just said, that of eighteen seventy three wiped him out
and basically killed them. Just looked worn out and all
of it killed them. People still nothing to do money, money, penniless, right,
People still remember, oh, Fremont. They remember him for playing
the American flag in the Rocky Mountains on his first expedition,
like he was claiming the West for the United States
or for himself. Plus a bunch of plants are named

(01:25:47):
after him because of all the botanical stuff he recorded,
Sure are. There's even a big statue of him at
Pathfinder Regional Park near Florence, Colorado.

Speaker 3 (01:25:57):
Oh here's a fun fact for you guys. He even
came up with the name Golden Gate for the strait
between May and San Francisco and his memoirs The Golden
gate Bridge.

Speaker 2 (01:26:07):
His biographer Alan Evans, he got some good things to
say about Freemont. He said two things stood out first
when he looked at his life. First, his life was
like our old box chocolates. I never know what you're
gonna get, point as a roller coaster of epic highs
and brutal lows, full of storms and sunshine. Second, how
could someone who nailed it so hard sometimes crash so spectacularly? Yeah, Evans.

(01:26:29):
He thought Fremont got his impulsive, brilliant streak from his
emotionally messed up parents, but they also pushed him to
lean into his reckless, adventurous side without teaching him the
discipline and needed to keep it in check. Yeah. Once
he got out there, there was no holding back. You
ain't kidding.

Speaker 3 (01:26:43):
Lincoln had his own take on Freemont. Though he thought
Freemont was honest, but he made a huge mistake by
shutting down, by shutting everyone out, He wouldn't even let
anyone get close or tell him what was really going on.

Speaker 2 (01:26:57):
This screwed him up. Surrounded by a bunch of yes
man a lot of historians, not along with Lincoln on
that one.

Speaker 3 (01:27:04):
Then there's this ugly incident there in the Bear Flag
Revolt twenty ninth of June eighteen forty six, Fremont he said,
I want you to kill that California named Barisia and
his two nephews on the shores of San Rafael. Rebecca
Solnett points to this as a shady moment that mark
California's rough road a statehood.

Speaker 2 (01:27:25):
And it might have even caused Fremont volts in California
when he ran for president as Republican in eighteen fifty six,
because he didn't even win that state. The killings himself
aren't up for debate, but why it happened is. Some
say Fremont's crew was getting revenge for two of their
guys killed by the Californians Californios against the Mexican version.
Others think Fremont mistook the Dharro brothers for soldiers. Oh

(01:27:47):
One theory even says it was straight up racism from
the white Bear Flaggers. Probably was, and Barry Essa and
his nephews might have been seen as Native Americans, which
already know they were slaughtering those guys on site. Ain't
so no matter are you slice it? Pretty messed up
on his part? Fuck was?

Speaker 3 (01:28:03):
John and Jesse Fremont had five kids. The first Elizabeth
Benton they call her Lily, born in Washington, D C.
On fifteenth November eighteen forty two. She lived a long life,
passing away in la on the twenty eighth of May
nineteen nineteen. Then there's Old Benton Fremont born in Washington
on the twenty fourth of July eighteen forty eight. Well,

(01:28:25):
he didn't even make it to his first birthday, as
most of them did not. Not he died in Saint Louis.
Then you had John Charles Fremont Junior born in San Francisco,
nineteenth of April eighteen fifty one. Well, he was a solid.
He had a solid career in the Navy. He served
from sixty eight all the way to nineteen eleven. He

(01:28:46):
even made it to Rear Admiral.

Speaker 2 (01:28:48):
Rear Admiral.

Speaker 3 (01:28:49):
He commanded the Monitor USS Florida from nineteen oh three
to oh five. He also worked as a naval attached
attach attache. He also worked as a naval attached in
Paris and in Saint Petersburg from nineteen oh six nineteen
o eight. He led the battleship USS Mississippi from nineteen
oh eight to nineteen oh nine. Rapt ups his career
as commander of the Boston Navy Yard from nineteen oh

(01:29:10):
nine to nineteen eleven. Sadly he passed away in Boston
March seventh, nineteen eleven.

Speaker 2 (01:29:17):
Then you got their last child that they had. It
was Anne Beverly, born in France on February first, eighteen
fifty three.

Speaker 3 (01:29:27):
Well she only lived for five months. Oh no, she
wasn't the last, because there was the last. Francis Preston
born on seventeenth of May eighteen fifty five. He made
it to September nineteen thirty one when he died in Cuba.

Speaker 2 (01:29:40):
Died in Cubaha in eighty seventy four, something like that.
In addition to nearly two dozen plants, cities, streets, buildings,
and geographical features named after him, other commemorations include the
prehistoric Fremont Culture, named after the Fremont River where it
was first found. Eighteen ninety eight, the US put Fremont
on a commemorative stamp as part of the trans Mississippi,

(01:30:00):
which was a big deal back then. Yeah, eighteen ninety
eight got out of stamp. That's how you make it.
And you know I'm on a stamp. Then, during World
War Two they named the S S. John C. Fremont,
a liberty ship after him. It was laid down May
twenty fourth, nineteen forty one, launched September twenty seventh, nineteen
forty one, and was the first liberty ship delivered by
a West Coast shipyard. Sadly for that though, just like
John Freemont, his career hit a mine in Manila Harbor

(01:30:24):
in nineteen forty five and gone.

Speaker 3 (01:30:27):
You got the Fremont cannon. This massive, crazy, expensive trophy.

Speaker 2 (01:30:32):
It's a replica of a cannon Fremont took on his
eighteen forty three eighteen forty four expedition through Oregon, Nevada.
In California, it's the prize for the annual college football
show down between University of Nevada Reno and UNLV. This
is bragging rights boys, Oakland, California. And surely enough, isn't
UNLV the rebels? Yeah? Uh, Oakland, California.

Speaker 3 (01:30:56):
There's a Fremont monument in Jaquin Miller Park, marking the
spare spot where he first laid eyes on the San
Francisco Bay. Then you got Freemont, Nebraska. They got the
Pathfinder Chorus, which is a barbershop named after.

Speaker 2 (01:31:10):
Him, barbershop quartet group. They are singers, all right, right right.

Speaker 3 (01:31:13):
Then you got the Fremont Pathfinders Artillery Battery, which was
a Civil War renectment crew.

Speaker 2 (01:31:18):
Awesome cool. The US Army's eighth Infantry Division, which isn't
active anymore. It was nicknamed the Pathfinder Division after him.
Their crests had a gold arrow called the Arrow of
General Fremont. And during War War One and during World
War One they were based at Camp Fremont in Menlo Park, California.
Oh fuck yeah. And two thousand Fremont he got a

(01:31:39):
big nod when he was inducted into the Wall of
Great Westerners at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum.
Fuck yeah, dude. Twenty thirteen, the Georgia Historical Society, they
put up a historical marker at his birthplace in Savannah.
And in two thousand and six they also launched this
award winning website called the eighteen fifty six Handbook into

(01:32:00):
Fremont's first presidential campaign and the world around it. Damn
this guy, look at this guy. Good for him, Uh
fucked up? Had it? Rich died broke probably the only
guy we've covered so far that did more is more
known outside of the army than really shit he did
with the army, all right, which is kind of crazy,
but yeah, the explorer. Fremont, the explorer, i'n't even gonna

(01:32:24):
talk about a union and stuff because he did nothing
about basically, yeah, he was an explorer. Yeah, so John
Fremont and his story another classic waste all your money
after you get out of the army story. That's it.
Next week we'll be back for some random rebel guy
maybe maybe Polker, maybe uh Sterling Price somebody either or

(01:32:45):
we're back for more behind the battles of the American
Civil War. Mend The Mother is gonna.

Speaker 4 (01:32:49):
Be the the Aga, the Amadon, the band at the At,
the Accent, agin Agen, the Apinion, and again the Ape,

(01:33:13):
the am com then the Act b

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